1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the construction industry and, more specifically, to an improved trench lining system.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The general concept of trench drainage has long been used. Trenches are used where liquid run-offs occur, such as chemical plants, food processing operations, pulp and paper mills, pharmaceutical manufacturing, bottling plants, in parking garages and parking areas of shopping centers. The fluid from a trench generally goes into a catch basin or sewer large enough to release the material from the trench as it arrives. The top of the trench is normally covered with a slotted grate to allow entrance of the fluids, catching of debris, load carrying capacity for whatever may pass over it and, in some applications, they are solidly covered, such as crossing sidewalks or where conduits are carried within the trench and fluid entry is minimal and not necessarily desirable.
The temperature of trenches may vary widely. This is due to the surrounding temperature of the ground or to the temperature of the liquid runoff. Therefore, it is essential that a trench system be able to function properly either when extremely hot or extremely cold and to withstand the changes in temperature. For example, a trench system should not block the passage of the liquid runoff as may occur under hot temperatures if the liner expands nor break and leak under extremely cold temperatures as the liner contracts.
In the prior art, worn out trenches had to be completely removed by cutting the surrounding concrete, removing all brick linings when present, removing the frames and effectively starting over again to build a new trench. In the prior art, there was no way to convert an existing trench into a dual containment trench, or to build a trench by conventional ways and at the same time turn it into a dual containment trench. In the prior art, there also does not exist a method or system for containing the expansion of trench liners.
Thus, there exists a world-wide need for an economical method to line a trench into a single or double containment trench.
There also exists a need for a system to renew a trench without replacing it in its entirety.
There also exists a need to provide a means to control the expansion and contraction of trench liners.
There also exists a need for a system which can be rapidly installed, thereby decreasing plant down time.